Vietnam’s wood export expands nearly 16 pct in nine months

Vietnam raked in more than USD 6.7 billion from exporting its main forestry products in the first nine months of 2018, up 15.91 percent year-on-year, accounting for 23.17 percent of the total export turnover of the agricultural sector.

According to the Vietnam Administration of Forestry, the products ran a trade surplus of USD 5.08 billion in the period, with the surplus for wood and wood products USD 4.74 billion.

The US is the biggest importer of Vietnam’s timber goods, with import turnover of USD 2.7 billion in the first nine months of this year, up 15.8 percent compared to the same period of 2017.

At a wood processing factory

It was followed by Japan with USD 827 million (up 8.1 percent) and China with USD 812.6 million (up 3.8 percent).

The Republic of Korea, Australia, Canada and France were also large importers of Vietnamese timber and wood products, with respective import value of USD 699.2 million, USD 137 million, USD 115 million and USD 90 million.

Vietnam aims to earn USD 9 billion from exporting forestry products in 2018.

The export turnover of wood and timber products is expected to increase in the rest months of this year in line with consumption habits.

In addition, Vietnam and the European Union (EU) are completing procedures to approve the signing of the voluntary partnership agreement on Forest Law Enforcement, Governance and Trade.

By mid-July 2018, the European Commission approved the content of the agreement and agreed to submit it to the EU Council of Ministers for signing.

The Vietnamese Ministry of Agriculture and Rural Development has submitted the document to the Government for approval.

Nguyen Ton Quyen, General Secretary of the Association of Vietnam Timber and Forest Product, said the Vietnamese forestry sector is also facing many difficulties, including a shortage of raw materials for production and fierce competition with Chinese firms./.

( VNF/VNA )